Nick Kyrgios lands maiden ATP title with win over Marin Cilic at Marseille Open

Understated is not a word usually associated with the excitable and emotional Nick Kyrgios, and yet the 20-year-old Australian's reaction to his first career title in Marseille on Sunday was curiously muted. "Yeah, it was a good feeling, but, you know, it's just a tennis match," Kyrgios said after defeating former US Open champion Marin Cilic 6-2, 7-6 (7-3).

Just a tennis match, yes, but surely there is something special about a maiden ATP title tipped to be the first of many? "Yeah, I guess so. You know, I'm happy."

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Kyrgios lands maiden title in Marseille

Nick Kyrgios has beaten Marin Cilic in straight sets to claim his first ATP title.

Kyrgios said he was surprised to have trumped a quality field that included top 10 duo Richard Gasquet and Tomas Berdych, whom he eliminated in the previous two rounds to become the first player under the age of 21 to beat top 10 opponents in consecutive matches since Juan Martin del Potro stunned Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer at the 2009 US Open.

The hitherto world No.41 – earned 250 rankings points (taking him to No.33) and more than $165,000 – did not lose a set (out of 10), or a service game (out of 47) all week, and closed out the final with a 17th ace against the Croatian fourth seed, having won 35 of the 37 points on his exceptional first serve.

He then turned to his box, including brother Christos, clenched a fist and smiled, promising to return to the southern French city in 2017, because, well, "j'aime bien le fromage". The cheese lover may not be to everyone's taste, but one of the sport's most exciting talents continues to be a drawcard wherever he goes.

"I played my first final last year (in Estoril) and I sort of was never looking for it and I didn't really expect to win this title this week after having a couple of weeks off," said Kyrgios, who withdrew from his planned Australian Open follow-up in Rotterdam with an elbow injury. "But from the first round I started playing really well and I just gained confidence as I kept winning matches.

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"I think I served really, really well again. I was serving really well all week. I didn't get broken once. That was the main thing that was good. And I was able to put pressure on (opponents') serves a lot when I was getting through my service games really quickly."

Cilic, too, was impressed, while lamenting his failure to convert his only break point late in the second set. Kyrgios thus became the first first-time tournament winner in the Open era not to drop serve throughout a tour-level event. "I think he played really, really well today," Cilic said. "He served amazing. It was difficult also from the back of the court. I think he was returning well, making a lot of returns in the first set. I didn't adjust well enough on the balls that were coming back."

Kyrgios tweeted his "thanks for all the messages everyone. Pumped with my first title. Now on to Dubai!" On Monday morning, he was scheduled to drive to Nice airport for the flight to the Middle Eastern city where he played in the IPTL last year, and hopes the fast conditions will work to his advantage in a first-round match against seventh seed and newly-minted Rotterdam champion Martin Klizan.

He will then return to Australia for next week's Davis Cup tie against the US as the first Australian man to win a title since his likely singles partner at Kooyong, Bernard Tomic, defended his Colombian Open crown last July.

Captain Lleyton Hewitt led the congratulations on social media, ending his message with #firstofmany, a theme continued by the sidelined Thanasi Kokkinakis. "En fuego," tweeted Kokkinakis, who may or may not "j'aime bien le fromage", but clearly knows "on fire" when he sees it, and is a budding linguist, too.

For Kyrgios, who had already emulated his idol Federer by reaching two grand slam quarter-finals as a teenager, there has now been a breakthrough of another kind. Just a tennis match, but a significant one. However nonchalant he was determined to appear, one senses Australia's newest tournament winner was smiling on the inside.